The Snow Queen and The Dishonoured Assassin
by RTOneZer0
Summary: For Queen Elsa of Arendelle, life is as good as it could be. The gates are open. The economy is strong. Arendelle is prosperous. But when a mysterious young assassin, who had sworn to protect Arendelle with all his life and is desperate to forget his past, enters her life, she is caught in a battle to protect her kingdom and all those she loves from an unknown enemy.
1. Facing old fears

**AN: Just before we start this story, I would just like to say that this is not an Assassins Creed crossover. It will though have some of the outfits and weapons eg. Hidden blade. This story may start a bit slow but trust me there will be heaps of action later on. So without further ado, Let's begin our story…**

Facing old fears

Queen Elsa of Arendelle paced back and forth restlessly in her study, trying her hardest to calm herself. Even 4 months after the Great Thaw, she was still scared to talk or even show herself in public. What was even worse was that today she had to make a speech in the center of town, about the Christmas Ball that was coming up very soon.

Elsa panicked as ice started to spread across the walls. "Conceal, Don't feel" she said quietly. She thought about her sister and closed her eyes, trying to relax her thoughts.

Only a few months ago, Arendelle had been thrown into a deep winter because of her; a prince from the Southern Isles had tried to take the throne by trying to marry her sister. In the end Elsa had just isolated herself from everyone by running of into the mountains, thinking she would be free forever.

She was wrong. Her brave sister, her brave little sister Anna had gone to the mountains to try and convince her to come back to Arendelle where she belongs. Elsa, out of fear, had struck her sister's heart leaving her to slowly freeze to death.

Even without Elsa knowing, Anna had returned back to Arendelle, with the help of very a brave young man and reindeer, and had sacrificed herself for Elsa by jumping in front of a sword and turning into solid ice.

Long story cut short, Elsa had thawed Anna's heart by an act of true love, and with the help of her sister and the young man with the reindeer (who is Anna's current boyfriend) Elsa was able to thaw Arendelle back to normal again. But still, even now, Elsa's fear of other people was still present. She was still afraid of hurting others, especially her sister.

" _Your sister is dead… because of you" _The cold words still made Elsa shudder. Elsa had been so close… so close to dying.

The queen's current trains of thoughts were suddenly interrupted as the doors of her study flung wide open and a figure that moved with inhuman speed wrapped her arms around her and pulled her into a bone crushing hug.

Elsa knew who it was even before she saw the person's face…

_Anna_

"Anna… get… off plea…" was all that Elsa could manage.

Hearing this, Elsa's smaller sibling hugged her even tighter, causing Elsa to gasp madly for air. It was amazing how her redhead sister, who has barely any weight, can hug so tightly.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Anna let go of her sister and smiled cheekily at her.

" So… how is everything, are you ready to do your speech?"

" I don't know Anna, what if they don't want to hear me, what if they're scared of me, what if I forget my words, what if…"

" Elsa! You have been practicing for weeks, how can you possibly forget? You can even say the words in your sleep.

At hearing Anna's words, Elsa felt her cheeks redden, and looked down to hide her embarrassment.

" Besides," the redhead continued, "what could possibly go wrong? Everyone in Arendelle looks up to you, they like you as their queen and leader."

"Thanks Anna, but what if I hurt someone… they will probably get angry and…"

Anna blew a raspberry.

" Yeah right, if anyone tries to hurt us, I'll punch 'em like I did to Hans."

Anna started practicing uppercuts and hooks against the air.

Elsa couldn't help but smile at seeing her sister. Anna, no matter how old she was, is always the same. She always had her playful behavior and friendly attitude that could always brighten anyone's mood up.

Finally, after her short sparring session against thin air, Anna turned to Elsa and took her hand in both of hers.

" Elsa, it's okay, I promise. Nothing will go wrong. I'll stand beside you every time, we'll do this together."

" Thank you Anna, you always stand next to me no matter what."

" Hey… that's what sisters do right?"

As if on cue, a round, plump butler, with a head that was already balding, walked in.

" Queen Elsa, Princess Anna…" he began, but was cut off by massive sigh, that sounded more of a groan, from Anna.

" Kai, how many times do I have to say, Anna and Elsa is enough… Jeez!"

" Er…yes, right", the butler looker unsure of himself, " I believe it is time for speech Your Maj… Elsa."

" Yes, thanks for reminding me Kai," Elsa replied politely, " We were just about to go."

And with that the 2 sisters left arm in arm for the town square, leaving a bewildered looking Kai staring dumbly at the wall behind them.

**That is the end of chapter 1. I hope you have enjoyed it; the next chapter will be following soon. See you then…**

**OneZer0**


	2. Welcome to Arendelle

**Hey guys, I'm back with Chapter 2. Please tell me if you liked the first chapter. This is my very first fanfic and I'm really nervous about it. Anyway, off with the story…**

Welcome to Arendelle

As the Queen and her sister made their way down to the town square, a mysterious young man had just entered the gates of Arendelle.

As he quietly walked down the crowded streets, many eyes turned to see him. This didn't really bother the man, he was more or less used to this kind of 'attention'. Those who saw him couldn't help but stare at his attire. There was nothing ordinary about his outfit. In fact, most people would call it somewhat… weird.

The young man wore an unbuttoned black jacket, tailored with red accents, that went all the way down to the back of his ankles. He also wore black leather gloves and black pants that were tucked inside his black leather boots. Inside his jacket, he wore a vest with an open neck. A belt ran around his waist. On it were: a few pouches, 2 pistol holsters holding 2 flintlock pistols and a scabbard that carried an antique looking sabre. Not only that, on his wrists the man wore leather bracers with hidden blades under them that could be extended or retracted with only a flick of his wrists. His left blade though, could be pivoted in any direction and held in an ice pick grip if he to duel-wield a weapon. Slung across the young man's back was a black recurve bow, along with a leather black quiver, which held almost 16 arrows. On top of all that, he wore a black hood that covered his eyes and shadowed most of his face- a very strange and unique outfit indeed.

**AN: in case you still don't know how the man looks like, Google Assassins Creed 3 New York Outfit. You should then get a clear picture of how he looks like, except for the black bow and quiver. **

As the young hooded man kept walking along the street, he looked for an inn or tavern he could stay in. He figured that he really needed a proper place to stay for the night, and not just sleep in the open streets or alleys, prone to any danger, like he had been for the past 48 hours.

Now as he came to think about it, the man actually realized how tired he was. His eyes were red and bloodshot from exhaustion, and there were heavy bags under his eyes from the lack of sleep he had. The man chuckled to himself as he thought about the last place he had slept at. It was at a town a few miles from Arendelle. The young man had slept in a side alley next to a beggar who stank of piss and wouldn't stop asking him a whole lot of stupid questions. In the end, the beggar just passed out from drinking too much booze. That wasn't the end of the man's problems though, the beggar had snored like a fat pig all night along, and even a one point, started singing in his sleep like a little kid. In the end, the man had just left early and continued on his way to Arendelle, a few hours before dawn.

Luckily, the young man had just found a decent, looking tavern at the end of the street- except, for its name of course.

_The Queen's Head_

Hastily, he stepped inside. The tavern, or more of a circus, was filled with singing, jeering, shouting and cursing. People packed into every corner and available table of the loud and crammed tavern. As the young man walked to the counter, drunken low lives stumbled across the room, screaming, fighting, and even throwing bottles at the walls. The whole place couldn't be described as anything else other than: chaotic.

The bartender, an overweight, middle- aged man that looked like an ogre more than a human, looked up briefly at the young man approaching the counter, before muttering something what sounded like a rude comment.

" What, d'you want?" He sneered

" A cold drink would be nice, and can I also order a room for the night?"

The bartender grumbled and walked off to get the things the man wanted.

Looking around, the young man had finally noticed how small the tavern actually was. It was a miracle that it could fit so many people without literally breaking.

The man took notice of his surroundings. A piano stood in the far corner of the room, on a stage set next to the tables. A fireplace had been set directly opposite of it. By the looks of it, there was only one exit: the wooden door at the far end of the tavern. The door looked like it had been made a century ago. The mouldy wood was cracked and there was rust on its hinges. A good kick could bring it down in no time. Dirty windows stood on either side of it, failing to bring in the streaks of sunlight shining through its dirt-covered surface. The whole bloody place looked like it might collapse at any moment. The young man had already started having second thoughts on whether he should stay at the flimsy tavern when a sound behind made him snap his head in the direction behind him.

The bartender, or should I say 'the ogre', had returned with a mug of beer and was busy pulling out a set of keys while the young man dropped a few coins onto the counter.

"So…" the bartender started, " this your first time here in Arendelle?"

"Uh… yeah, I'm just passing through and will be here for a few days." The young man lied. He had indeed been here for nearly all of his life. Only 3 years ago when the former King and Queen of Arendelle had drowned on a mission trip to the Northern Isles, had the young man left and had, from then on been living by himself.

The bartender looked unconvinced, "So you've heard about the Queen's 'accident' a few months ago?"

"Yes I have. Word spread very quickly about a young queen who had lost control of her powers and had put Arendelle into a supposedly 'eternal winter'.

"Well, you heard right sonny. Lots of people say that…"

The door was suddenly flung open, and a group of 4 burly men entered the tavern. The room was suddenly deathly silent as the group made their way to the counter.

The leader of the group, a dark, tanned, tall man, with long hair and a beard that was longer than Jesus', leaned over the counter and smiled a goofy grin, showing little bits of blackened teeth.

"Hallo Charlie, my friend," the voice was raspy and coarse, "Me and my boys here are a bit thirsty after a long day at work. Care to give us a drink?"

The bartender, who was now known as Charlie, looked as if he had just bit his tongue.

" loo… look Jonny, this is the third time you have come in asking for a drink without paying. Give me a break man; I have a wife and 2 kids. I have too feed them as well, you know."

" Ohhhh, come on Charlie. You wouldn't want us to go to your home instead and ask your wife for a drink, eh."

Fear crept into Charlie's eyes, and he seemed to be paralysed as he let man's words sink in.

"Ok…Ok, I'll get you a drink. Jus…Just don't come near my house ok."

" You know, it's not really nice to threaten a man just because he doesn't want to give you a drink."

The voice came from the hooded man sitting next to him.

The bearded man seemed to finally notice the young man sitting only a few meters nest to him.

"Oi, shut up and mind your own business. This is between me and him." He pointed to the bartender with a bony finger.

"Especially, when the man has a family, can't you at least pay him? I mean, just because you've got no one, doesn't mean that…"

"That's IT!"

In a flash, the bearded man was out of his chair, and getting ready to deliver a blow that would most likely crush the young man's skull.

He didn't even get near the man's face when a hand stopped his in mid- swing and another countered by forming into a fist and slamming into his face.

For a moment, the bearded man just stood still, shock written all over his face, before he dropped onto the floor, howling as blood poured out of his nose.

Turning around, the young man immediately saw the other 3 companions spring straight into action and head for him. The nearest one, did a right hook aiming for the man's jaw. He got nowhere near as a foot slammed straight into his stomach and sent him sprawling.

The second companion rushed from the side aiming to do a knockout hit, but instead found himself hitting thin air. The young man had ducked and had delivered a blow straight into his stomach, winding him, before doing a spinning kick that caught him in mid air and sent him reeling 2 meters back.

_2 men down, one left_

Out of the corner of his eye, the hooded man saw something small and shiny miss his face by inches, leaving a small _whoosh_ of air as it came back down, ready to deliver another quick strike.

_A knife… the third attacker has a knife_

As if it was a reflex, the hooded man flicked his wrist and extended his left hidden blade, pivoting it into a defensive grip, just as the opponent's knife came down to deliver a second strike, or should have been _the _finishing strike.

_Clang_

The sound echoed throughout the deathly, silent room as the hooded man stopped the knife in mid- flight.

A second passed, and both fighters looked into each other's eyes, before the hooded man extended his right hidden blade and drove it up the opponent's thigh.

A blood-curling scream filled the tavern as the attacker dropped onto the floor, screaming loudly and clutching onto his leg. When there was nothing left, the man just lay there, whimpering with tears streaming down his face.

The bartender stared wide-eyed at his savior with both shock and awe. The man had downed 4 opponents in less than 10 seconds. Looking around, he saw them lying on the floor. Some were moving ever so slightly. Others lay deathly still.

The bartender turned back to look at young man. He couldn't have been more than 23 years old! He stood looking at the 4 men on the ground, his expression masked by the shadow of the hood.

" Um… than… thank you," the bartender stuttered, " I will try repay you as soon as possible."

" No, don't. I don't need your money. Think this as a small favour from a friend."

" These men have done this many times. I'm scared they will hurt my family."

" They won't… not anymore after what I did to them."

There was a short pause, as the bartender took in everything the man had said.

"Um… I'll get you another drink."

The bartender turned to get a drink.

A second later he turned back again.

" Wait, what if…"

He found himself staring at an empty isle and an open door.

The man had already walked out…

**Well, that was a long chapter. I hope you all liked it. As I mentioned before, there were a few weapons from Assassins Creed, but nothing major. Please review this chapter. I will see you all at chapter 3.**

**OneZer0**


	3. Unexpected Visitors

**OK guys, this is chapter 3 "drumroll" I hope you all enjoyed chapter 2, give me reviews on it plz. Everything you say is appreciated. This chapter may be a bit shorter than the last and may end with a cliffhanger so… without further ado, let us begin chapter 3.**

The Unexpected Visitors

Elsa paced back and forth nervously in the town hall, trying to steady her breath. She glanced out the window at the small crowd already gathered.

_It was getting bigger by the minute._

Elsa's hands started to tremble. She had seemed to forget everything that she practiced. Her words, her confidence, everything she had been practicing for today… Gone.

_No,_ she thought, _I can't do this. I don't even know what to say anymore. What if I screw up, what will the people think of me?_

A gentle hand touched her arm and Elsa snapped back into reality.

" Hey Elsa, it's ok, you can do this, you'll be fine."

The voice came from her little sister Anna.

Elsa slowly turned to face her trying her best not to look upset.

Despite her best efforts _she still couldn't._

" Elsa, listen, you don't have to worry about anything, I'll be with you every step of the way."

" Anna… I don't think I can do this. I might stutter then what? What will people think of me then?

" Elsa… really? We've talked over this more than ten times already. You'll be fine. It will all come back to you. Trust me.

" Besides, maybe if you do well, you may attract some…_ good looking gentlemen._"

" Anna!" Elsa hissed. She inwardly groaned. Her sister was always like this. Teasing her about 'cute boys' who might be interested in her. " Now is not the time."

" Elsa, it's ok, do you realize how beautiful you actually look?"

Elsa hadn't. She had spent hours in the morning doing her make-up, but she had been so worried and nervous that she didn't even seem care how she looked.

_She hadn't realized how cold it was_

" Brr… Elsa… could… y-you like make the t-temperature a bit w-warmer… please."

Elsa gasped as she saw that it was snowing lightly inside the room.

" Oh no… Anna I'm so sorry."

Elsa quickly melted the snow, returning the room to its normal temperature.

" There that's better. Elsa, I believe in you. You can do this, believe me."

" Thanks Anna, you always encourage me. Without you I don't think that I can…"

_Ting-Tong, Ting-Tong_

A loud bell started to ring as the hour struck midday.

_It was time._

Elsa stood up and started to make her to the door.

" Elsa," Anna's voice stopped her at the door, " remember, just breathe…"

Elsa took a deep breath.

_I can do this._

_I will do this._

_For Arendelle._

_For Anna…_

She opened the door, and walked out…

_**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**_

The hooded man waited in the market place, trying to blend in just in case the men in the bar he had knocked out, came out looking for him.

_Phew, that was too close!_

Now as he came to think about it, the man realized how close he had been to dying. If he were _even_ half a second to late, the knife would have probably pierced his neck, and right now he would be lying on the floor with a pool of blood around him, slowly bleeding to death.

_Damn, _he thought, _I really have to stop getting into fights. One day, its gonna cost me my life. _

He was right.

This wasn't the man's first fight. He had been in plenty of others, some of which were harder and more dangerous than the one he just had in the bar.

_And some which had nearly killed me as well. _He thought grimly.

The man's thoughts were suddenly interrupted as a loud bell started to ring.

_It is already midday. Time travels fast, doesn't it?_

The big crowd in the market place suddenly shifted toward the town hall.

_I wonder what's happening._

As if someone had voiced his thoughts, the massive wooden doors of town hall were suddenly flung open and a very beautiful young woman suddenly walked out. A flurry of ice followed her every step and she conjured small ice sculptures into the air as she walked down the small flight of stairs.

The crowd was quiet.

Everyone was in awe.

Anyone who gazed upon her couldn't turn their eyes away. She was wearing a beautiful crystal-blue dress made of ice, with small intricate snowflakes that shone like emeralds in the sun. A long, transparent cape swept the ground behind her and her long, platinum blond hair was braided loosely down her left shoulder, the snowflake incrustations brightly glinting in the sunlight. Everyone was mesmerized. With her pale, bare neck and shoulders that seemed to glow like crystals in the sun, her beauty was simply: indescribable.

No one had even seemed to notice the slightly shorter ginger-haired girl standing next to the young woman, accompanied by a tall, muscular, mountain man with blond hair.

The hooded man suddenly gasped as he realized who the beautiful woman was.

_Queen Elsa of Arendelle_

Yes, he had heard stories of her, but he had never thought that she would be this young…and this stunning.

Like everyone else, the man was to hypnotized to say anything. So he just stood there, mouth hanging open like an idiot, as the queen started to address the crowd.

" _Citizens of Arendelle, I am here to talk about the Christmas Ball that will be coming up very soon… " _

_**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**_

It was over.

Elsa had done it.

She had done her speech… without fail.

The crowd was now applauding and Elsa had never felt better in her life. She breathed a sigh of relief.

Elsa squeaked as she suddenly felt a pair of arms sneak and hug her waist.

" See, I told you that you could do it. You just had to believe in yourself." Said an all-to-familiar voice.

" Thanks to you Anna. You were right, all I had to do was calm down and it would all come back. I-I really don't think I could've done it without you. "

" Huh, when am I wrong?"

Elsa laughed. Then she stopped abruptly.

She had seen something, out of the corner of her eyes.

_She saw something that made her veins turn to ice._

As her vision focused, Elsa saw 5 hooded men, all with their faces concealed.

They were pushing through the crowd.

_Coming straight for her and her sister…_

_**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**_

Just like the queen, the hooded man had also seen the 5 assassins. They were slowly advancing toward her, blocking all the possible exit points.

_Great, they are coming for her._

The man took stock of the situation. There were 5 guys. Each armed with swords and daggers. They were trying to blend with the crowd, making hard for the young man see them.

At this distance he was practically useless. They were too far away for him to get to them. He started to panic. They were going to kill the queen. He had to do something.

He looked up, and his heart skipped a beat.

_They were getting closer._

Without even realizing, the young man's hands had started to move toward his bow and arrow.

_They were now 20 meters away._

The man pulled an arrow out of is quiver.

_15 meters_

He nocked the arrow into place.

_10 meters… they were closing in on the queen._

The man's fingers slightly trembled. He took a deep breath and pulled back the bowstring.

_5 meters… the nearest attacker had pulled out a knife._

_It was now or never._

The man aimed at the attacker with the knife.

And released his arrow…

**OKKKKKKK… so how was that? I ended with a cliffhanger just like I said. Don't worry. You will all find out what happens in the next chapter. **

**Over the next week, updating might be a bit slow because I have my exams **_**I hate it! **_**But trust me, I will write chapter 4 as soon as possible. So see you then…**

**OneZer0**


	4. A matter of life and death

**Hello again guys, I am about to start chapter 4. Just had a really tough week of exams… I just wanted to ask 1 question: how many of you are getting "Assassins Creed Unity". I know it probably sounds stupid. I just wanted to ask because I am a big fan of assassin's creed. BTW, if any of you are on console (ps3) I would be more than happy to add you on PSN. **

**Anyway, enough of me rambling, lets begin Chapter 4.**

A matter of life or death

When people think about the physics of one of the oldest composite projectile weapons ever made, it is simply mind blowing. As the shooter pulls back the strings and nocks the arrow, the 2 arms of the bow bend back and collect energy. Obviously, the bigger the bow, the more energy it can store. As the shooter lets go of the string, the arms suddenly fling forward, releasing the stored energy and tension and delivering its deadly projectile across the air at a speed of around 200 mph. During its short flight, the arrow continues to pick speed as it soars across the air, eventually falling, and hitting its designated target with pinpoint accuracy. All in all, the bow and arrows was a weapon of wonders.

The same though, couldn't be said for assassin the hooded man had fired at.

In a blink of an eye, the arrow had entered through the side of his neck and had severed his major artery and his windpipe. Blood spurted out in all directions. The assassin dropped to his knees, sliding his hands up to his neck in an attempt to compress the wound.

Despite his best efforts, his attempt was futile.

_He was losing too much blood._

The poor man gurgled and spat out blood, trying his hardest to suck in precious air.

A fraction of a second later, the assassin was lying on his back, a pool of his own blood already forming beneath him. The world around him had now become nothing more than a blur. He saw little black spots in the corner of his eyes getting bigger, slowly consuming his vision.

In one final attempt, the assassin turned his head just in time to see horrified look on the Queen's pale face.

_He had failed his task… _

_He had failed to kill the Queen of Arendelle._

The man closed his eyes, never opening them again.

**_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_**

Less than 50 meters away, a hooded figure moved swiftly through the panicked crowd. Sweat poured down his face, pooling inside his hood. His eyes stung from his sweat, his head throbbed from exhaustion, his chest burned, lacking its supply of oxygen… even his feet hurt.

_Nevertheless, the man was determined to protect the Queen._

He wished he had had more time to think of a plan of attack. Literally 5 seconds after his "shoot-first-ask-later" plan, the crowd surrounding the Queen had ignited like a powder keg, after seeing the unlucky assailant drop dead on the ground, wriggling like a fish, with blood spurting out of him and a 30 inch arrow sticking out of his neck.

The town square was now nothing more than a mess. People ran in all directions, screaming as if it was Judgment Day. The 4 remaining assassins all looked around the square madly, trying to ping the guy who had shot their mate.

Their hard efforts were cut short as a hooded man, dressed in black, suddenly rocketed out of the crowd.

The assassin the hooded man was aiming at, turned just in time to see him jump and bring the hard pommel of a sabre a couple inches above his eyebrows. He stared… shock written clearly across his face. He didn't say a word. He couldn't. All the hooded man heard was a loud _crack _as his skull split and he crumpled to the floor next to his dead mate.

Without wasting a second, the hooded man spun around, and clipped the guy just to his right. He got the good just above the temple. He groaned collapsed just in front of the Queen's feet.

She whimpered and moved back a few steps.

_Good for her._

The man finally turned to the last two. The bugger nearest to him was still some distance from Planet Earth, still unaware of what was going on. The man ran into him. He staggered back, arms wind milling, and crashed into his mate with a bandanna.

_They had no time to recover._

The assailant which Bandanna crashed into was unlucky enough to be at the sharp end of the hooded man's sword when he slashed at him. He screamed and dropped onto his knees and gripped his _now_ open stomach to try and somehow hold what was left of his torso back together. It was useless, the blood wouldn't stop running. The ground beneath him was a pool of red as the last of his life was sucked out of him. The man's eyes became grey and lifeless, his chest struggling to suck in the last bits of precious air. A few seconds later, he stopped moving leaving his arms and legs jutted out at awkward angles. His ragged and heavy breathing stilled as the last of his life left his body. He was dead...

As the hooded man turned to end the very last assailant, the guy with the bandanna, he was met with a gloved fist colliding with his face. For a second he was stunned as tears blurred his vision. He felt a small trickle of blood run down his stinging nose and onto the hard concrete down below. The hooded man never got to brace himself for the second attack, a powerful kick that sent him flying back a few meters and landing on his back. Now the trouble came. Momentarily paralysed as the pain and shock registered, the man lay totally defenceless as his enemy slowly trudged forward to finish him. He had to do something, something that would catch his enemy off guard.

_So he waited..._

Then he could hear it. The heavy breathing of his tired opponent, the hiss of the blade as the sword slid slowly out of its scabbard. The man waited until he could see the silhouette of the assailant's arms bring the sword above his head, poised like a deadly viper, ready to make the finishing strike.

_Now..._

With nearly inhuman speed, the hooded man rolled to his side just as the blade hit the spot where his head would have been less than a second ago.

Bandanna, the guy who just witnessed something that was close to impossible, stared dumbly at the ground where his target was just a split second before. It was impossible for a man to move and dodge a blade at that speed. It scared Bandanna, really. It seemed that the black hooded figure he was fighting had the tendency to move as fast and as quietly as a ghost. He'd seen how quickly and _easily _it had taken him to kill all of the other assailants. It was a skill that no man ever possessed.

A glint suddenly caught the corner of Bandanna's eye, and he turned just in time to see a sword dive into the side of his body, making a squelching sound as it penetrated the layers of skin and bone, finally going out the other side. At first Bandanna felt nothing, just a little tug as he felt the blade being pulled from his body. He felt his knees buckle and his body shudder.

_Then he felt the pain._

It felt like he was being stabbed and cut by a thousand needles and knives all at once. Bandanna's scream was cut by the blood that clogged his throat, threatening to spill out any began to gurgle and cough up chunks of his insides and blood. Foam had begun to pool out of the corners of his mouth. His eyes bulged and seemed to break free from their sockets. The man's howls of pain had turned to animalistic snarls and screams. It felt like his guts were being dug out from his body. His whole body seemed to look like it was going to explode any minute.

Deciding to end the his miseries quickly, the hooded man pulled out his pistol and fired at the wailing figure in front of him.

_The screaming suddenly stopped._

_The crowd was deathly quiet._

All eyes were all turned toward the hooded man, who was still clutching his pistol and sword. He in turn, stared at the Queen and Princess of Arendelle, trying to somehow get words out of his mouth.

_He couldn't. All that came out were some strange groaning noises._

_Damn, _he thought, _I must sound like I'm constipated or something._

He was probably right. The Queen and Princess dumbly stared back at him, mouths wide open, still unable to process what they had just seen… and to figure out _what the hell _was wrong with the hooded retard in front of them.

The man suddenly felt himself being lifted into thin air and slammed back first into ground. He struggled trying to kick off the 300kg idiot on top of him.

All he got was a head butt in return.

Painfully, the man opened his eyes. He was aware of the steady trickle of blood running from his nose, though he could do nothing about it. His hands were pinned by his side. He was stuck.

"Wait… wait…we can sort this ou…." The man was suddenly cut of from the punch that connected with his jaw.

Now, totally defenseless, all the man could do was watch…

He saw men in purple uniforms talk with the Queen briefly, their mouths moving at a rate faster than the speed of light.

_Arendelle guards… the men in the green and purple uniforms were actually Arendelle guards, _the man realized.

One of the guards had suddenly turned and pointed at him.

_The man's heart literally stopped beating._

He saw the Queen nod and the guard salute.

_Oh no… they're going to kill me._

The hooded man was now in total '_panic mode'._ He started to wriggle and squirm trying to break the iron grip that his arms were in.

_His efforts were useless…_

He saw the guard bring his weapon up…

But instead of it firing fire the deadly projectile that would most likely blow his brains out, it started a decent back down the way it had come.

Relief flooded the man's veins.

_Phew, thank God, he's not going to…_

A sharp pain suddenly filled the man's head, and he jerked to his right immediately.

The guard had hit his head with the butt of his gun.

The man groaned. He opened his eyes but he couldn't focus, the world was spinning too quickly. He saw little spots and fleck at the edge of his vision; they were getting bigger, consuming him.

_Then he saw nothing… the world had gone black…_

**_Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_**

_Darkness… it was the thing the he had lived with, trained with… survived with. Now he was in it again. He wasn't scared… no, the darkness felt somewhat familiar… like an old friend he once knew. _

_Now, the darkness was shifting. The man could make out the blue sky and the tall trees. The wet dew on the grass glistened in the sun. There were birds singing and insects humming. It looked just like a perfect summer morning._

_But it wasn't…_

_There was smoke slithering around the trees…_

_And where there was smoke, there was fire…_

_Suddenly he was back… to the last place he ever wanted to see. He could see a small cottage amidst the all the smoke. It was burning. There were flames licking the wooden exteriors and foundations. The whole place was going to collapse any minute. _

_And there they were. A small boy along with his mother and father suddenly broke out of the burning door. They were dirty, covered in soot. Their hairs were matted and they were coughing their lung out._

_With the burning house in the background, the father, mother and son looked as if they had just walked straight out from hell. _

_The flames started to intensify, eating away the remains of the cottage. The small family had all stopped, their sore feet and polluted lungs stopping from going any further. _

_The flames were now searing hot and they was slowly spreading..._

_An explosion suddenly rocked the earth, and burning debris flew in all directions._

_"RUN! GO!" the father's voice only came as a hoarse whisper, but it was enough to get everyone slowly moving again. _

_They weren't fast enough…_

_The second explosion sent everyone sprawling. The impact of the fall was enough to knock out a bloody giant. _

_No one moved… they couldn't. It felt as if their guts had been wrenched out. _

_As the little boy looked up he could see his mother lying not far away. Her limbs were jutted at an awkward angle and there was blood running from her nose. She lay there… silent and still._

_What was worst was the sight of the boy's father. His legs were now burned stumps at the knee. His torso was only a mix of black and burnt flesh and blood. His face was burnt up to the point where it was no longer recognizable- just a crisp circular shape with eyes, nose, ears and mouth. _

_As the boy turned, he saw his father move ever so slightly to face him. His unrecognizable face was enough to give him nightmares for the rest of his life. The boy could see his father's mouth slowly move, his voice barely more than a whisper._

_" Go… before… it… to late. The men… who did this… will… come… back…"_

_As his father coughed what was left of his stomach, he could only lip his last few words._

_" Remember… I… will always… love you…"_

_And with that the boy got up and ran. He didn't care about the unbearable pain in his gut, or the searing pain in his feet. _

_He just ran…_

_It was the third explosion that stopped him in his tracks. The boy turned just in time to see the endearing flames engulf what was left of his mother and father…_

_That was it…_

_He couldn't take it any more…_

_The pain was unbearable… _

_The boy buckled to his knees and looked up toward Heaven._

_He screamed! _

_It was a cold-blooded scream. Not one of fear, relief or anger… but one of hopeless despair._

_As he knelt around the burning carnage, it didn't matter how much his lungs burned, or how much his stomach ached… nothing could seem to stop the boy from his endless screams of despair… nor from his angry curses that he seemed to hurl toward Heaven._

**_Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_**

It was the same cold-blooded screams that suddenly woke the hooded man from his nightmare and sent him sprawling off his bunk. He lay there for a moment panting, trying to catch his breath.

_He hadn't even realized that he was screaming in his sleep._

Sweating, tired and smelling like the rear of a donkey, the man got up and looked around. For the first time he realized that he was that he was actually in a dark cell. It was just a metal box with a door. There was mould and cobwebs in the corner and something that insanely looked like human waste in a bucket.

_Heck, there was even blood on the floor, probably from the last unlucky prisoner. _

He took a step forward.

_Clang_

He moved less than a meter.

The man looked down to see that his hands were chained to the wall. He no longer had weapons (just his hidden blade was left, duh…_hidden, _get it?) He inwardly groaned.

_Great, just what did I do to deserve this. I saved the Queen. I coulda at least had celebration and a hug…_

His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the sound of the heavy steel doors being opened.

" Ha, you're awake, you better get yourself ready. The Queen really hates waiting."

A fat guard with a face as round as a sunflower had suddenly walked in. To be honest, he would have had a better reputation if he worked at the donut shop down the road. His uniform was at least three times smaller than his size, making his belly and tits do somersaults as he covered the short distance to the cell. Sunflower looked as if he wanted to show off in front of a few girls. His hair was oiled back and parted and his arm muscles bulged in his tight sleeves.

_The only bad thing was that Sunflower had spent too much time lifting weights but had skipped out on the exercising bit, and instead took the time to 'chill out' by eating donuts. _

Sunflower reached down and unchained the man… before putting on another set of shackles on him.

_Just freaking great!_

As he pulled the man up to his feet he called out the door to another guard.

" Eh, Johannes get your lazy arse in here will ya!"

A second later a tall, lanky guard who the man assumed was Johannes, entered. He was literally the opposite of Sunflower. He was skinny and had a zit covered face. He had an Adam's apple the size of a coconut and his body seemed to be lacking the necessary muscles that it needed to have to survive. All in all, Johannes looked like a dope. His eyes were only half open, and he looked like as if he was finishing his one hundredth yawn that day.

The guards had now grabbed each of the man's shoulders and were dragging roughly him across the dungeons. As they passed, the man saw the other cells in which the prisoners were held him. They were all chained, sitting down and looking down at the ground… their eyes were lifeless.

A minute later, the trio ascended a flight of stairs and past a heavy iron door.

Instantly, the surroundings were much more friendlier. Portraits hung on the walls, maids moved in every direction. There was even an ice chandelier hanging off the ceiling!

_This place looked bloody epic, _thought the man.

No longer had he thought that, the guards had stopped him outside a set of double wooden doors with an ice crystal embedded into it.

Sunflower walked up to doors and did a sequenced knock.

_Knock knock… knock knock _

A second later, a feminine voice called out, "Enter." There was authority in her voice, and it strangely sent a chill down the man's spine.

As he was led inside, the man took stock of his surroundings. To his sides were massive sets of arched windows. A long red carpet led up to a small platform at the end of the room, where a massive throne stood facing the doors. An elegant, beautiful woman with blonde hair sat on it, and next to her stood a girl with pigtails looking slightly bored. Both their expressions were unreadable…

_They look really similar. The only difference is that Mrs pigtails had brunette coloured hair and had a bit more freckles than the blonde sitting next to her. _

As the guards brought the hooded man to the center of the room, the brunette and blonde woman got up and walked toward them.

"Please untie the prisoner… and take off his hood." Her voice was stern, but strangely kind and full of authority.

_Ok, great, now everyone will know how I look like, I am sooooo dead…_

In less than a second, one of the guards, which happened to be Sunflower, wrenched the man's hood off.

There was literally a gasp from everyone who was present in the room.

The hooded man, or rather now, the unhooded man was left on his knees with his face fully exposed, staring hardly at the floor. His features were surprisingly attractive. He had brown curly hair that went all the way down to his shoulders. His face had rough, but good-looking features. What stood out the most, were the man's emerald green eyes. They seemed to glint, as if the sun itself was shining on them.

For a short moment, no one said anything. It was the Queen who finally broke the silence.

"Guards," her voice seemed to tremble slightly, "wait outside until I tell you to come back in."

Sunflower and Johannes immediately complied and left the room. Now it was just the man, the Queen and the Princess.

"Greetings stranger, I am Queen Elsa of Arendelle," she pointed to her sister, "This is Princess Anna of Arendelle.

"I hope you realize what is going to happen for what you did today. You caused quite a commotion. You risked the lives of my sister and me and could have harmed the citizens of Arendelle. I hope you know what punishment you're in for."

_The man continued to stare at the ground and said nothing._

"What is your name?" The Queen's voice seemed to push him into the ground.

_No answer._

"You don't want to tell me?"

_No answer._

"You're making this harder for yourself."

"S..Shane," the man's voice was barely audible.

"Excuse me, I didn't get what you said."

"My name is Shane,"

The Queen paused for a moment, seeming to take this all in.

"Ok Shane," It was the Princess who broke the silence this time, "My I ask why you wanted to kill me and my sister?"

_Kill… what! I didn't even try to hurt them. What retards!_

"I didn't try to kill you… I was protecting you." Shane answered quietly.

" Then how do explain what happened at Town Square today?"

" If it weren't for me, you and your sister would be dead, those men wanted to kill you."

" Why? What for? We didn't do anyth…"

The Princess was suddenly cut off from the sound of the windows smashing.

Both Elsa and Anna screamed as 3 hooded assailants suddenly swung in, immediately adapting into their fighting stances.

"Well, Queen Elsa, it seems you were lucky that this young man saved your life by killing my friends. It seems like we'll have to finish the job for you this time…" The voice came from the assailant who was assumed to be the leader of the group. Unlike the other two, he had a metallic skull mask that totally covered every inch of his face, leaving nothing exposed other than his eyes, which were hidden from the shadows of his mask.

**AN: for all those who still don't have an idea of how this guy looks like. Google: the assassin from the game Dishonored.**

As expected of course, the doors of the throne room were suddenly flung open, and both Sunflower and Johannes barged in, weapons at the ready.

Sunflower locked on to his first target, sword drawn, face set into an angry snarl…

_Well, of course, his whole little commotion lasted less than a second, because by the time he got his weapon up and all that… he had looked down to find a throwing knife embedded in his chest. _

Sunflower dropped dead like a fish to the ground, his body going spastic. He had a surprised look on face, like he still didn't know what had just happened. Well, too bad for him, because he probably will never ever get to know how he died. His body had suddenly become still as the last of his life finally drained from him. His eyes were still wide open with shock by the time he was dead.

Around two seconds after Sunflower had gone down with a knife in his chest, Johannes had instantly leapt into action. He had directed his attacks at Skull Mask, trying to slash him across the gut.

Shane had to admit, Johannes was good,_ better than Sunflower at least,_ but no way near as skilled as Skull Mask. He was wielding duel daggers and seemed to block all of Johannes' attacks with ease, as if he was sparring with a mate. In less than a full minute, Johannes was already sweating like pig. His attacks were getting slower, his defenses were getting weaker. He was going _not_ to last a lot longer…

Deciding to make the most of the distraction, Shane leapt up and aimed for the other two assailants. Both instantly turned and attacked him. The first one aimed a jab for Shane's throat. He sadly found the true fact that a hidden blade had stuck up his 'willy'.

_There was no time to waste._

Shane instantly pivoted around to face his second opponent, and aimed a back kick to deliver the good news to his head.

_He unfortunately missed_

_Smash!_

Shane suddenly felt the air get knocked out of him and doubled-over as the opponent's knee collided with his ribcage. His head would probably be rolling on the ground if it weren't for his quick instincts.

Shane immediately somersaulted forward, just as the opponent's sword came to deliver it's final strike… it instead collided with thin air.

Shane ducked as the opponent swung his sword, aiming for his head…_again._

He kneed the assailant in the crotch making him bend over in pain. Without pausing, Shane jabbed the man's throat and swung a right hook at his face. Blood suddenly splattered all over his face.

_The man's eyes bulged as the pain finally registered_

Shane stepped on the man's calf joint with the heel of his foot.

_The crack of bones breaking and the man's howls could be heard from half of the castle away. _

As the assailant dropped to the ground, Shane brought his foot up and smashed it on the man's skull.

_There were no more screams._

_All that was left of his head was a puddle of bones, brains and blood…_

To his right, Shane heard screams and looked to see Skull Mask drive both his daggers into Johannes' chest.

Both Elsa and Anna had their hands over their mouths to stifle their screams as Johannes dropped to the ground and laid still, a pool of blood starting to form around him already.

Without thinking, Shane lunged forward and extended both his hidden blades.

_Clang_

The sound of metal hitting metal filled the room, as Skull Mask parried Shane's attack.

Shane suddenly found himself hitting thin air, as Skull Mask sidestepped him at the last second. He was about to attempt another strike, when he suddenly felt a flash of pain across his stomach.

He looked down to see his own clothes already soaked in blood.

_He'd been stabbed_

Shane dropped to the ground as he suddenly felt his head spin. His vision started to blur and he felt his head throb uncontrollably. He turned just in time to see the Queen release a volley of icicles toward Skull Mask.

Apparently, none of the icicles hit their intended target, as Skull Mask suddenly disappeared out the window.

The Queen now turned her attention toward Shane. He was aware of a small puddle of blood already pooling beneath him. He looked up just in time to see the Queen look at him and say something.

_He couldn't hear a word she said_

With the pain in his stomach to hard to bear, Shane closed his eyes just as he felt the world of darkness envelop him…

**Well, that is the end of chapter 4. I hoped you all liked it. Please give me reviews. For the next few days, I probably will not be able to post any chapters since I will be away on school camp. This is why I posted a big chapter this time. Anyway I hope you all enjoyed and I will see you when I get back.**

**OneZer0**


	5. A proper welcome

**OK GUYS. I am back! It has been a very long week for me and I just got back from school camp yesterday. So please… bear with me, I might make a few silly mistakes. **

A proper welcome

_" Shane…"_

_"Shane!"_

_"Shane… wake up, we're going to be late!"_

_The small boy got up groggily and rubbed his eyes._

_"Huh…wh…where are we going?"_

_"…Training."_

_"Training… wh- what training?" the boy asked in a small voice._

_ A tall man crept out of the shadows of the room. He was wearing a dark cloak and hood that shadowed every inch of his face. His eyes were as cold and hard as steel and his voice sounded like it had been dipped in cement._

_Shane felt himself being pulled roughly up by the man and led out of his small bedroom. Normally, Shane would have thought it was just another busy morning with him doing chores. But today was different. Shane could feel it. Something was going to happen…_

_Ever since his parents had died, Shane had lived with a mysterious man who he had to call "mentor". Shane had never known the "mentor's" real name. But he didn't really care. As long as he had somewhere to sleep and some food to eat he didn't mind. _

_Both Shane and the "mentor" had just descended a long flight of stairs and had arrived at a set of heavy, iron doors._

_A wave of fear suddenly washed over Shane. He had never been to, or even seen this place. What he was about to see was totally new to him._

_The sound of the heavy, iron doors being opened suddenly brought Shane back to reality, and he stood there, mouth agape, eyes wide open staring at what lay ahead of him._

_Inside the metal doors was a dimly lit, wide room packed with all sorts of weapons: swords, spears, daggers, maces axes, and tomahawks. Off to one side of the room was a desk. On it was a pair of bracers and a neatly folded black training outfit-with a hood. _

_"Shane we are the Arendelle assassins. We are a small group of fighters who work only under the King's order to both protect his family and Arendelle. _

_"It is our duty to fight and kill the enemies of Arendelle to create peace and stability. The King relies on us to do this. We work under the shadows to serve the light. We are trained to work quietly and quickly to take out our targets, then to disappear without a trace. Yes, it is true that we are not given a lot of credit from the public by the king will reward us for his great work._

_"Shane I tell you this because I see great potential in you. It is true that you have had a very rough childhood. Your father and mother were both murdered. The fire was never an accident."_

_Shane stared hard at the "mentor", unable to process what he had heard. _

_"What… wh… why were they killed? They never did anything wrong." Tears had started to run freely down the boy's cheeks. _

_"WHY… tell me why?!" his breaths were becoming short and ragged._

_"Because… your father was an assassin just like us. He served faithfully under the king. There was another group of assassins who wanted to kill the king. Your father fought them bravely with a few of us and managed to kill the ringleader."_

_"…"_

_"Apparently, his apprentice was angry and sought revenge. He went and burned down your father's house, intending to kill all three of you. You though, luckily escaped and I took you in with me to train you and to make you follow your father's footsteps." _

_Shane felt angry. Angry at the fact that no one had ever told him what had happened to his parents. He was angry with his father for not telling him about the assassins. _

_He wanted revenge…_

_Shane felt something new. He felt something spark inside of him-as if there was a fire deep inside. He felt stronger and determined to now follow his father's footsteps, and avenge his death. _

_Shane was no longer scared. It was as if a new boy had emerged from the dark shadows and now had the burning desire to fight._

_"Shane. Will you train to become an assassin just like your father?"_

_Shane nodded his head ever so slightly._

_The "mentor" passed him his training outfit._

_"Good. Let's begin…"_

**_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_**

Shane woke up just in time to feel the skull-splitting headache pounding inside his head and the sharp pain he felt in his gut.

Man, he thought, what could be worst? Arriving in Arendelle for the first time in many years, instantly getting into a fight in a bar. Then jumping into another fight to protect the Queen from some bad guys, only to get knocked out after saving her. And then suddenly waking up in a dungeon, only to get into another fight with bad guys moments after meeting with the Queen!

The worst part was fighting, then getting stabbed in the gut by some hooded guy who wore a skull mask and fought with extreme speed and agility.

_Well, the fact that he beat Shane meant that he was fast… right?_

And now here he was. In a dark room, lying on a comfortable bed, trying his hardest to dull the throbbing pain in his head.

Truth be told, Shane didn't even know where he was anymore. For all he knew, he was still somewhere in the castle, waiting to either get a medal for his bravery or receive a death sentence for attempted murder on the Queen and Princess.

As Shane lay on the bed, he thought about the dreams he had.

_Those old painful memories…_

Shane wanted to forget them…

He wanted to forget his past.

He thought about the fire, mother, father, the "mentor", and of course… Elise.

_"Shane c'mon lets go…"_

Her voice was as clear as ever, pinned in his head.

_"c'mon, c'mon we're going to be late!"_

Elise, her face was still imprinted in Shane's mind. Her beautiful blue eyes, her fiery long red hair, and her mesmerizing smile. She was still the same as ever. It would all still be like it if _'it' _had never happened. She would still be here if…

The door suddenly opened and Shane bolted upright, immediately regretting as the pain in his stomach exploded.

At first he saw nothing, then, a lightning bolt with red pigtails suddenly rushed toward his bedside.

"ohmygosh, ohmygosh, ohmygosh, you're awake! Are you alright! OHMYGOSH, thank you so much for saving us! You know, at first we thought you were a bad guy, than these hooded freaks jumped in, then you came in to fight them, then you got stabbed then…!"

As quickly as Anna's mouth had blabbered, it stopped. A very deep blush suddenly formed across her face and Shane realized that she was actually looking at…him.

Shane followed Anna's gaze and felt his own cheeks start to boil. He was actually half naked, dressed in nothing but underwear. Anna was staring with wide eyes at his muscles and abs.

_Great, just the way to greet the Princess… half naked, red in the face, hair disheveled… WHAT COULD BE WORST? _

It was a small voice that filled the awkward silence in the room.

"Um, Anna, would you please give our guest some room?"

Both Anna and Shane's heads snapped in the direction of the voice, and there, standing in the small doorway, illuminated by a only small source of light from the moon shining through the arch window, was the Queen herself holding a small tray of food.

Shane felt his jaw drop. He stared, speechless, at the Queen. She was the perfect interpretation of a goddess. Her ice blue dress glowed in the small amount of light, her hair was now flowing half loosely from her shoulders, and her face seemed to glow as if she was some sort of angel.

_Oh, and that small smile at her lips…_

Elsa didn't look stern like she did when Shane first met her in the throne room. She wasn't that cold blooded looking ruler who looked like she was going freeze him the instant he spoke. No, her eyes were now warm, friendly, kind and even compassionate.

_Damn, _Shane thought,_ she was really good at putting on her 'stern, evil Queen mask' earlier. _

"Hi, how are you feeling?" Her voice suddenly interrupted Shane from his trance.

"Uh...good, I guess."

"We were really worried when you just passed out. The doctor said you should be fine if you rest for a few days. Your injury was nothing too major, just a flesh wound near your abdomen.

"You must be really hungry now, you were out for the best part of the day."

It was actually true. Shane couldn't remember the last time he had eaten, and thinking of food made his stomach growl.

Elsa chuckled lightly and place the food by his bedside. Shane instantly took it greedily and wolfed down the chicken and potato, _forgetting all about his manners._

About halfway throughout his delicious meal, Shane saw that both sisters were looking at him intently and blushed heavily.

"Th…thank you Majesty, for the meal, its delicious."

"Please it's the least I can do, you saved me and my sister's lives earlier on."

_Ok, so now she says I 'saved' her._

"Who were those men who were trying to kill us?"

"I don't know, but they are trained professionals who are good at what they do."

"WHAT! ARE YOU KIDDING!" Anna barged in. "You kicked all their butts. I mean, you did all that Hiyahhhh, Powwww BANG, WHHHHA ZAAMMM stuff!"

Anna started doing really unladylike fighting moves and accidently hit Shane in the face.

"Oooops… sorry, I'm so sorry."

"It's ok, Princess." Shane rubbed his sore face.

"Anna, please," Elsa started, "Shane, do you have anywhere to stay tonight?"

"Um… yeah… there is always, you know, a pub or haystack somewhere where I can sleep for the night…"

_Awkward silence_

Then, Anna went ecstatic.

"No! No way! Absolutely No! You are not sleeping in a haystack or pub you can stay here with us in the castle."

"Anna!" Elsa started to blush.

"And you know what! Elsa can show you around the castle tomorrow and you two can hang out and you know…" Anna's eyebrows twitched up and down, a small cheeky smile was plastered across her face.

Elsa's face was so red she felt like she was going to literally burst and pass out from embarrassment.

" Um ok, ok, that's enough for one night." Elsa cut in, " Shane you can stay with us in the castle until we figure out what to do with you. Besides you are a really good fighter, maybe you can protect us from those guys if they come back."

At this Shane felt his cheeks start to redden.

"Very well, good night Shane, we'll meet again in the morning." Elsa flashed one of her warm smiles, making Shane's stomach do somersaults.

As Anna stepped outside the room, Shane took the chance to talk to Elsa.

"Thank you for letting me stay at the castle, your Majesty, I really appreciate it."

"It's ok. Besides you did save me and Anna's lives."

Elsa started to walk toward the door. Just as she was about to step out she turned back looked at Shane.

"And Shane…"

"Yes, Majesty."

"Just call me Elsa."

"Of course."

"Goodnight."

"Goodnight Elsa."

As soon as Shane heard the door click, he instantly flopped back down on his pillow and let out a long sigh of relief.

_Wow, what a day! Fighting bad guys, meeting with the Queen, getting stabbed… zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz._

Shane felt his eyes slowly close as he entered the world of peaceful darkness. He didn't even finish what he was thinking when his mind suddenly clouded, and he lost his battle against sleep…

**_Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_**

_Somewhere in Arendelle…_

A small group of men stood silently in the small, candle lit room as a black hooded figure walked among them.

"Gentlemen, it seems that Shane has once again interrupted our plans, this time from assassinating the Queen of Arendelle." The voice sounded smooth and silky, but was as venomous as a snake.

Skull Mask turned to face the small group of men waiting silently.

"Today we have lost some of our great men. They were killed by Shane's blade. It seems that he is more capable than we thought he was. We have deeply underestimated him."

Murmurs started to erupt among the men. They were getting worried and scared, and have lost their confidence.

_Weakness is a sure sign of defeat, _thought Skull Mask.

He held up a gloved hand. The small crowd immediately went silent.

"Yes, I know what you are all thinking. You are scared that you might be his next target. Yes I understand. You have no reason not to fear. He is deadly, smart and dangerous.

"That is why we have to change our tactics. He has his weaknesses. He will eventually fall for the Queen, so she will be our main, primary target. If we can get hold of her, then Shane will have no choice but to give in. We have killed his family and most of his friends. He can't risk losing anyone else.

"Gentlemen, I believe this plan will work, as long as I have your full cooperation. Together we can bring Shane down. We can all defeat him. So, who wants to help me bring him down once and for all with our new plan?"

Every hand in the room was raised

"Good, then this is what we are going to do…"

**OK. That is the end of chapter 5. I hope you have all enjoyed it. Sorry for the long wait. I have been busy lately. Anyway, please review this chapter and tell me what you think about it. Reviews are always appreciated. Anyways see you all in Chapter 6…**

**_OneZer0_**


	6. A near miss

**Hey guys, I'm really sorry for all the cliffhangers. It's just that I have really limited time to write and to post weekly. I have quite a bit of schoolwork to do. So I promise all you readers there wont be many more cliffhangers. Anyways lets get on with chapter 6…**

A near miss

_Knock, Knock, Knock, Knock._

Shane woke up from his dreamless sleep by the sound of the door of his room opening. As he slowly opened his eyes, he managed to catch sight of a plump looking man walking to his window, before opening the curtains, allowing light to breach the dark room.

Shane winced and squinted as the light suddenly flared his vision.

"Ah, your awake. How was your sleep?" The plump man said with his back to Shane.

"Uh… good thanks."

The plump man walked up to Shane's bedside and placed down a tray of food. As Shane took a closer look to the plump man's features he nearly jumped out of his skin.

"K…Kai… is that you?"

The plump man stared at Shane, somewhat bewildered.

"Yes… how did you know my name?"

_There was silence for a few seconds_

Then it all clicked in.

"Shane! You're alive! I thought you were killed on… that mission. God, it's been such a long time."

"Y...es… it ha..s been a very lon..g time." He struggled as the butler wrapped him in a bone-crushing hug.

"My, my… look at you. Looking as strong as ever. You've grown taller since the last time I saw you. Have you got any girls yet?" Kai winked.

Shane felt his cheeks redden.

"No, I've been busy with business Kai, and the last time I checked, you had much more hair on your head and your stomach wasn't this bloated."

Kai rubbed his bald patch, "Yes, it was quite stressful ruling the kingdom until the young Princess Elsa's coronation, you know, after the old King and Queen died…"

There was a pause

"Kai, you haven't told them what actually happened haven't you?"

"No, it would hurt them very much, but someone, one day, will have to tell them the truth. It will hurt."

"I know. What I still don't get is why anyone would want to assassinate the Queen. The attacks the other days were no coincidence, someone must have planned them."

"It was just as well you arrived on time, or the Queen and Princess would have probably been dead by now."

Shane nodded

"Well, it's said that Queen Elsa apparently frozen Princess Anna's heart and it was thawed just like the rest of Arendelle was by an act of true love. Even though the incident is over there is still a lot of tension between Arendelle's neighboring kingdoms, especially the Southern Isles.

"Now, Arendelle is virtually on the edge of war. The other kingdoms are still scared knowing that an ice-wielding sorceress lives. Which brings me to my next question, where were you all this time? I mean, you never returned to Arendelle after the 'accident'.

"I was in Corona to search for assassins who have attempted to eliminate the Royal Family. Word has it that they were from the Southern Isles. When they disappeared I heard from and messenger that they were going to Arendelle to try and steal the crown. I left immediately."

After that Kai left Shane to eat and tidy up, ready to meet the Queen. Shane ate and showered, feeling clean for the first time in many weeks.

When he got out, his black outfit and weapons were neatly placed on his bed for him-they had been cleaned up as well. Shane got changed, tidied his hair and donned his weapons. He had been told by Kai to meet the Elsa and Anna in the study as soon as he was finished.

Shane left his room feeling clean and refreshed. He felt kind of at home, standing in the quiet, sunlit hallway.

As Shane quickly ascended the long fight of stairs toward Elsa's study, he couldn't help but notice the paintings that hung up on the crimson walls. There were literally hundreds of them.

They ranged from simple background paintings; to portraits of Elsa and Anna, and even the former monarchs-their once life filled eyes seemed to stare icily at Shane.

He shivered and quickly moved away.

Shane continued through the hallways, making no sound. Years of training had taught him to move stealthily wherever he was. One could never be too sure when someone might jump and ambush them-especially when they were alone.

As Shane rounded entered another hallway he was greeted with a massive hardwood door with a blue snowflake engraved in it. He'd arrived at the study.

Carefully, Shane walked up to the door and knocked.

"Enter" The Queen's voice was friendly but full of authority.

Shane slowly pushed the door open. It easily swung open without a sound.

Shane had to admit. Elsa's study was tidier than he had expected it to be. Sunlight streamed in from every window, making the whole room look majestic. A table stood at the center of the room. There was a small stack of paperwork neatly to one side of it, and a vase of fresh flowers at the other.

Elsa was seated in a large chair looking at some letters when Shane entered. She smiled and stood up to greet him.

"Good morning Shane, how was your sleep the night before?"

"Um… i-it couldn't have been better…" Shane seemed to always have a problem when talking to Elsa. His brain seemed to suddenly freeze.

_Damnit_, Shane said to his brain, _Stop! It's looking so weird._

Luckily, Elsa didn't really seem to notice, and giggled at Shane's confused expression.

"It's ok Shane, I understand if you're still a bit tired. But Anna and I are planning to go out to town to do some shopping. We wanted to take you along with us, but if you're not feeling well then you don't have to…"

"No! It's ok I'm fine. I'll come with you."

Elsa was unsatisfied, "Shane, it's ok, the doctor said you should rest. I don't want you getting hurt even more."

"It's ok Elsa, I'm fine, besides you might need someone to defend you, in case there are more attackers."

Elsa laughed, "Ok Shane, you can come. You should get ready, we are leaving soon."

Shane pointed to his black hooded outfit and weapons.

Elsa blushed and looked down, "Oh… ok, looks like you are ready."

Just then, the door of the study swung open and Anna bombarded inside.

"Hi Elsa! Hi Shane! I'm here. Are we all ready? I want to go down and get some Christmas shopping done."

"Good morning Anna," Elsa replied smoothly, "By the looks of it, I take that you are ready to go down to town."

Anna nodded gingerly, "Yes, come on, I want to go. Wait, is Shane coming with us?"

Elsa nodded, "Yes, he wants to come."

Anna gave her a sly look and Elsa blushed. Anna stared hard at her, and Elsa stared back. Then, Anna raised her eyebrows and cocked her head to one side and Elsa shook her head.

_Amazing,_ thought Shane, _it's like their both having a conversation just by looking at each other._

Finally, after a minute of awkward silence, Shane cleared his voice.

"Ahem…Your Maj… Elsa, Anna, don't you think its time to go now?"

Both sisters looked up at Shane and blushed red, realizing what they were doing.

"Yes, l-lets go."

And with that, Shane, Elsa and Anna went outside and left to go to the town. But unknown to all three of them, a solitary hooded figure stood, hidden from sight, watching their every move…

**_Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_**

"Let's get that one"

"No"

"Ok, what about that one?"

"No"

"Fine, why don't we get…"

"Anna! We already have so many things in our bags, we can't carry anymore."

"Fine," Anna huffed, "Geez, you're no fun."

"Besides," Elsa added, "it's already getting dark, we should start heading back to the castle."

Shane looked up from his place among the tightly packed row of market stalls. He had deliberately placed himself hidden from an enemy's line of sight, but still close enough to help Elsa and Anna in the case of an attack.

Now, Shane slowly approached the 2 sisters, scanning through the crowd to see for any signs of danger.

Shane didn't know what it was, but he felt something in his gut. There was something not right, Shane could feel it, he just didn't know what it was.

Elsa looked around and saw Shane walking toward her.

"Shane, there you are, I was wondering were you went."

Shane nodded, but didn't reply. He kept his eyes trained on the crowd.

"Shane…is everything alright?"

The black hooded figure didn't respond, though his shadowed face was now glistening with sweat.

"Shane…please talk to me."

"We should go back to the castle." His voice was lifeless and cold.

Elsa was suddenly taken aback by Shane's tone. She had never heard him like this before.

"W-hy… what's wrong?" Her voice started to tremble.

"There's something not right. I know it's not. I can feel it. Somebody is watching us."

Panic filled Elsa's eyes and she quickly grabbed Anna and pulled her close.

"OW! Hey! What's happening?" Came Anna's startled response.

"Let's go back now…"

"Wh-What? Why?" Anna was getting impatient now.

"No time to explain… lets go!"

Without wasting another second, Shane led them down the busy street, back toward the castle.

**_Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_**

A deadly silhouette stood on a dark rooftop watching a man in a black hooded outfit and the 2 monarchs heading for his trap.

He smirked and took aim on his crossbow.

He lined his iron sights on his most hated target.

He saw them get closer…

And fired.

No one saw the projectile soar through the darkening sky. No one heard the deadly hiss of the razor sharp head as it drifted closer and closer to its target…

_Shane's heart_

**_Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_**

_"Shane, in tough situations, things do not always go to plan. You may find yourself walking into an ambush or trap, set by the enemy, and you probably won't even know it._

_"Sometimes you have to rely purely on instinct to save your life. You can suddenly know or feel that something is not right. You don't know why or how, but you just know it is. That is instinct. It is the feeling inside you that tells you something is wrong or a reflex that may just bring you out of harms way before you even know it." _

_The "mentor's" words were still embedded in Shane's mind_

_"This is something you can't learn, it is something you have…"_

**_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_**

Shane had seen it, just a small speck, glinting in the early moonlight as it travelled closer and closer toward him. He had actually sensed it was coming before he had even spotted it.

In less than a blink of an eye, Shane had ducked and rolled to the right just as the arrow nicked the edge of his arm. Had he been half a second late, the arrow would have most certainly been deeply embedded in his heart.

For a second, Shane froze, unable to process what had just happened. He suddenly heard a scream and looked down to find a small trickle of blood run down his arm. He turned to see Elsa grabbing him and screaming his name, terror imprinted clearly on her face.

"Shane! Shane! Are you alright? What happened?"

Elsa was suddenly cut off by the sound of another arrow embedding itself a few metres above Shane's head.

_Thuck_

This time chaos broke loose. The whole marketplace went ecstatic. People went in all directions to find cover, screaming and running for their lives.

Shane saw an opportunity in this. He could blend in with the crowd to make it hard for the shooter to spot them.

"RUN!" He roughly got up and dragged Elsa and Anna out of the market place with him, following the large crowd.

As the trio ran, arrows whizzed past their heads, finding random targets. An unlucky woman was in the path of another arrow when it struck her just below her neck. She gurgled and fell to the ground lifeless.

Anna screamed when she saw the woman fall with an arrow sticking out of her neck. She desperately wanted to stop, but Shane's grip on her arm was like iron, leading her on blindly.

It felt like an eternity when the group, and some lucky survivors finally reached the bridge leading up to the castle. A squad of armed guards were already out to escort the Queen and Princess safely back when they got there.

As Shane entered the castle courtyard he saw a stocky, built man with blond hair and a reindeer approach Anna.

Instinctively Shane felt his hand drop to the hilt of his sword, until he saw the blond man give Anna a hug.

She looked pale and sobbed in his arms, as the trauma of what she had seen suddenly set in.

Elsa was with them as well, whispering comforting words in Anna's ear. She too, looked paler than a ghost.

After a while of comforting eachother, Anna and the blond man walked over to Shane.

"Shane, this is Kristoff, my well…er…boyfriend, and Kristoff this is Shane. I'm sure you've heard of him, he was at the town square the other day."

"Oh, you must be the one who saved Elsa and Anna from those mysterious attackers the other day. I can't tell you how grateful I am." Kristoff's voice sounded deep but strangely gentle.

"Uh… thanks, do you mind if we…. Woah," Shane suddenly felt the world spin. He swayed uneasily on his feet.

"Are you ok, dude." Kristoff's voice was full of concern.

"I-arrow hit my arm…losing blood…need to get inside."

"Ok, quick, lets get you inside and patched up."

Kristoff grabbed Shane before he lost balance and half carried and dragged him into the castle.

Shane felt his eyelids start to cloud and he felt himself being laid down. The last thing he saw was Elsa's worried face looking over his. He saw her say something like, "everything is going to be ok". Then everything went black…

**_Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_**

"_Shane c'mon, we have to go!"_

_Shane looked at the redheaded girl next to him. _

_"Elise! Go! I'll distract them. Get to safety!" _

_The hooded men were getting closer. They were closing in on them._

_"No! Shane, I'm not leaving you."_

_"Are you crazy! You'll get killed! You have to go."_

_"Not without you."_

_Shane knew that was final. Elise wasn't going to change her mind. Why did his sister have to be so damned stubborn at times?_

_Out of the corner of his eye, Shane saw one of the men pull his sword and run toward him. _

_"Elise RUN!" Shane grabbed his sister's hand and started to sprint along the dark houses._

_Fast as he was, Shane was only a young, rookie assassin at this time and was not a very skilled fighter. _

_Knowing that the men were gaining up on him and Elise, he quickly turned around, pulled out his sword and slashed at the nearest assailant. _

_Shane was lucky the assailant wasn't prepared, and managed to slash him just below his chin. The assailant gurgled as blood spurted out of his neck, momentarily giving Shane the chance to finish him off. _

_Luckily, there were only a total of two men following. And with one already down, Shane turned to face the next attacker._

_Click_

_Shane froze mid turn._

_He could hear the unmistakable sound of a crossbow being loaded and cocked._

_There was nothing he could do…_

_It was over…_

_Shane closed his eyes, waiting for searing pain he would feel when the bolt pierced his skin._

_"SHANE! NOOOOOOOO!"_

_Strangely the pain never came…_

_Shane suddenly felt himself being shoved out of the line of fire and face planted on the ground. _

_He looked up and saw Elise standing where he was a second earlier… with a black arrow protruding out of her chest. _

_Shane got up and raced over to Elise just as she fell back on the hard cobblestones. The shooter saw what happened, and seeing that he had no weapon left, quickly ran off down the street._

_Shane could see a lot of blood pooling beneath his sister's body as knelt beside her, holding her hand. _

_Her breathing was shallow and sharp and her face was getting paler by the second._

_"Sh-Shane...?" Elise said in a small voice._

_"Sh-sh… it's ok Elise, you'll be fine." Shane replied reassuringly._

_"Shane… why us? Mom, dad… now me… why?" Tears started to pool her eyes._

_Shane couldn't bring himself to answer, and just stood there holding his sister's cold hand with tears running down his cheeks. _

_"I'm…I'm so sorry Elise."_

_With the last ounce of energy she had left, Elise extended her arm and touched her brother's face for the very last time._

_" I-Iove you Shane….this is not your fault…I love-" Her words trailed off as her chest suddenly stopped moving and her arms fell limply by her side. _

_Shane sobbed and closed her lifeless eyes with his fingers._

_"Elise please!" he whimpered_

_"No Elise! Don't do this to me. You're the only person I have left."_

_"Please Elise…don't die!"_

_"ELISE!"_

**_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_**

"Shane!"

Shane's eyes shot straight open, to see Elsa and Anna looking down at him.

As his mind wandered back to reality, Shane saw that he was lying down on a couch and a very comfortable looking room with a fireplace to one side.

"Wh-what happened?" He asked drowsily.

"After you passed out we brought you to the doctor so he could fix your wounds. Then we brought you here so you could rest." Anna added sheepishly, "it looked like you were having a nightmare, and you kept on mentioning someone's name…Elise."

"Who is she Shane?"

Anna looked unconvinced.

Shane sighed, "Someone I knew long ago. Look I should be getting back to my room it's probably late and…"

"No, no, no… you are staying here until you tell us what is happening." Elsa said sternly.

"What do you mean?" Shane tried to look innocent.

Elsa raised an eyebrow, "Those men who tried to kill us, who were they?"

"People you have no business in knowing of." Shane replied stiffly.

Elsa's anger seemed to flare, "What do you mean 'I have no business of knowing of'. These men tried to kill me and my sister, and frankly, by the looks of it, you seem to be the one behind all this."

Shane was one hardly to get angry.

But at the moment he was really pissed. He had just saved the Queen and Princess of Arendelle from mysterious killers, and even getting wounded in the process, and all they could give back to him was a hard-arse beating.

He was having none of it.

"Look, I just saved you and your sister from those mysterious killers and even getting injured in the process-twice. And now you hold me back as some sort of criminal."

Elsa smirked and moved her face an inch closer to Shane's.

"I'm the Queen and I can do what I want. So you better explain what is going on, or I'll hold you here until you do."

Shane sat up on the couch and Elsa sat next to him. Anna sat on the floor next to her. He knew he had no choice. They were going to find out one way or another.

_Better get this done and over with_

"The group of killers who tried to kill you is called Vendetta."

"What do they want with us? Vendetta sounds like a very er…. misleading name." Anna asked.

"Vendetta is very intent on trying to steal the crown of Arendelle. They always have been, even during your father and mother's reign. And hearing that a new Queen has recently been crowned, and has ice powers, they will stop at nothing to overtake your throne."

"And even if they do take over, what would they do with us."

"Well… seeing that your sister has ice powers, they may make her use her powers in a violent way against the neighboring nations to gain control and power."

"That's terrible! They would kill innocents, take over the kingdom, and make Elsa use her power against her will, just to gain power. And real-…"

Anna abruptly stopped as she noticed that Elsa was pale with fear, and trembling slightly. Shane seemed to notice as well and he placed a warm hand over her cool one.

"Elsa, it's ok. I'll protect you from these people. You have my word. They will not come near you." Shane soothed gently.

Elsa shivered and turned to face Shane, her blue eyes shining deeply with relief.

"Thank you Shane, I really appreciate your concern. It's that… my kingdom is in danger because of me; Anna is in danger because of me. This is all my fault!" At the last few words, Elsa's voice seemed to go up an octave and nearly into hysterical shriek. A thin layer of ice started to spread across the floor.

Shane gripped her hand tighter and stared her in the eye, " Elsa listen, nothing is going to happen. I will make sure that you and your sister won't get hurt. You have my word."

Finally, Elsa seemed to calm down and her breathing became steady and normal.

In a small voice, she said, "Ok, Shane, I trust you. Um… you can stay here with us for the time being…." She trailed off.

Shane smiled gently and nodded.

They stood looking at each other, and holding hands for a while longer.

It was Anna who broke the sweet silence.

"Um…Elsa, Shane, don't you think it's getting late, it's past midnight."

Shane and Elsa both blushed furiously and looked down at the floor as they realized what they were doing.

"Yes, of course, Shane it's really late and we should all head to bed."

Shane nodded and quickly got up and exited the room. Had he been for a second longer, the sisters would have seen that his face was the deep red colour of a tomato.

After Shane had left the room, Anna quickly turned to Elsa and grinned stupidly.

"Did you see that Elsa? He has taken an interest in you."

Elsa went red, "Don't be silly Anna, he just wants to protect me."

"You should go somewhere with him, and maybe even…" Anna winked.

"ANNA!" Elsa hissed. She could have passed out on the spot from embarrassment.

Anna giggled, "I'm just kidding Elsa. It's just he's really nice... and cute. You should get to know him better."

"Anna… you know I don't have the time for these kind of things."

"Hey, I'm just trying to make you happy. But whatever… I wanna sleep. Goodnight!"

Anna hugged her sister tightly.

"Goodnight Anna."

As Anna left the room, Elsa turned to the window and stared at the quiet moonlit streets of Arendelle.

She knew that her sister had a point. Maybe she should get know the mysterious man better. He seemed to be hiding something. Elsa could tell from his eyes.

But he seemed genuinely nice. He was kind and very protective.

Elsa yawned.

Whatever it was. Elsa would have to wait for another day. There were too many things at hand to be done.

But For now, Elsa knew she was safe. She knew Shane would protect her and her sister.

_She could trust him…_

**Well that is the end of chapter 6. I hope you have all enjoyed it. Pleas review- all reviews are always appreciated. Like I said earlier, I will try to not use too many cliffhangers. Next post may be a while since I have a lot of schoolwork to do before the end of the term. So stay safe and see you all in chapter 7.**


	7. Plans and Preparations

**Hi guys, I'm back. Sorry for the long wait. School has finally finished yay! And now I can write as much as I want. SO I HOPE YOU ENJOY THIS CHAPTER. It might not be as long, because I kinda rushed it soooooo…**

Plans and Preparations

As the days went by, the whole of Arendelle was excited for the Christmas Ball that was coming up in a few weeks. Officials and dignitaries arrived. Monarchs from neighboring kingdoms set sail for Arendelle, hoping to not get caught in the ferocious storms. Ships of every size and shape were packed in the fjord, carrying loads of supplies. During this time of year, everyone was happy.

Everyone except the Queen.

Elsa yawned for the one-hundredth time as she slumped very unladylike on her hard wood chair, in the meeting. It was getting late and her mind was clouded from the lack of sleep she had, and her eyes were red and unfocused. All up, she was a mess. She hadn't even noticed that her councilors were talking to her.

"Your Majesty, the Christmas Ball is coming up soon, have you planned who you're going to invite?"

"…hmmm… w…what?"

The councilor sighed, "Have you planned who you are going to invite to the ball?"

"Um…Yeah, I um…" Elsa trailed off once again.

"Your Majesty are you alright? You don't sound so well."

"Yes I'm fine, please continue." Elsa sat up.

"Very well, for this upcoming Winter Ball, we have decided to double the guards to be sure the assassination attempts won't happen again."

"What? No. The guests will probably get terrified. Besides I have Shane to protect me if there is trouble."

"I'm sorry, but we must take these extra precautions. There have been three assassination attempts on your life, and I'm sure that there will be a fourth. And what good is one man against ten, despite his skill?"

"Shane seems to be a very good fighter," Elsa objected, "He's already saved me and my sister's lives. Without him, I would have probably been killed."

"Yes…that's true of course. I have no doubt that this man is a very well trained fighter. But still, he is human. And he may make mistakes. We can't risk having those at the Ball. An besides-."

Elsa had had enough, "Enough! I will think about this matter myself privately. For now this meeting is over."

Elsa hurriedly got up and walked out the door. It felt like her head was going to explode. Behind her she heard the councilor bang his fists on the table and mutter something that sounded very like "women these days."

**_Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_**

Elsa walked down the candlelit hallways, to the dining room. As she opened the double wooden doors, she was surprised to already find Shane, Anna and Kristoff sitting down, already waiting for her.

Anna looked up as her sister entered, "Elsa! There you are. I was wondering when you were going to come and have lunch. What happened, you look upset."

Elsa walked over and plopped herself down on a confortable chair next to Shane. She sighed contently.

"Oh, it's nothing. Just the council getting on my nerves again."

"Uh huh." Anna didn't look content but she didn't push the matter any further.

"So how was the meeting? Did u plan the ball?"

"Yeah I did. Everything went very well." Elsa said sarcastically.

The doors were suddenly opened and servants rushed in with food and placed them on the table.

"Dinner time!" Anna said gingerly.

Kristoff laughed, "Ugh, why are you always like that?"

All he got was a hard punch in return.

Shane couldn't help but laugh. So far he had had a pleasant time with the two lovers. As always Anna was cheerful and restless, but was also warm-hearted and kind. Kristoff, on the other hand, seemed to be quiet and shy-quite the opposite of Anna. He seemed to like being alone, and not in front of a lot of people. Yes, he was kind and helpful. But what seemed funny to Shane was the fact that Kristoff was literally a towering giant, but on the inside, he was as shy as a mouse.

As soon as the food was served, everyone tucked in hungrily. Hardly a word was spoken. No one really cared how loudly or how messily they ate-even the Queen.

By the time every scrap of food was eaten, Elsa, Anna, Kristoff and Shane were all stuffed to the maximum. They all slouched lazily in their chairs clutching their stomachs.

It was Anna who finally broke the silence.

"So Shane, have you ever been harvesting?" Anna winked at Kristoff.

"Uh…no, I have heard of it, but I've never done it."

"You should go with Kristoff, tomorrow. He seems to need a new friend. You should even visit Kristoff's family." Anna said the last sentence with a hint of sarcasm.

"Yeah…ok. That'd be nice. I've never been ice harvesting before, and uh… it'd be nice to meet Kristoff's family."

"YEAH! You know Kristoff's family is really nice." The voice was foreign and childish.

Shane spun around and nearly jumped out of his skin. He was met with a small white snowman with twigs as arms, and a carrot for a nose. A small cloud hovered above its head.

"Hi! My name is Olaf and I like warm hugs." The snowman held out his twig arms and started to approach Shane.

Shane screamed and pulled out his sword, "What the HECK are you?!"

Olaf stopped and looked confused, "Well, I am a snowman, of course. And you look as if you need a warm hug." He started to approach Shane again.

It was all Elsa could do but burst out laughing. Anna though, could not stop herself.

"Sorry Shane, I should have told you earlier. This is Olaf, the snowman I made." Elsa's cheeks were red from holding in her laugh.

As Shane looked down, he saw that Olaf was hugging his leg.

"Hello, my name is Olaf. What is your name?"

"Uh…uh, my name is S-Shane."

He tried to shake the snowman off his leg. It was leaving a wet patch on his trousers.

"Wow ok Shane! You look very tall. And what is that black dress you're wearing?"

Olaf started laughing randomly.

Shane nearly choked, "This is not a dress. It is a specially made outfit I had tailored for me."

Olaf laughed even harder, even his carrot nose started to fall.

"You're alive?" Shane could not believe that he was just talking to a pile of snow.

"Well… I think I am alive." Olaf started moving his twig hands, looking at them curiously, "Elsa made me."

Shane didn't know whether to believe him or to just drop dead.

"Umm…yes." The voice came from Elsa. "I somehow brought Olaf to life when I was running…away from Arendelle. It was when I felt free."

"How come he doesn't melt?"

"Ooh…ooh I know." Olaf started jumping like an excited child. "Elsa specially gave me a special flurry so I don't melt. But the heat feels so good…"

"Ok Olaf why don't you go out and play outside." Elsa spoke to him as if he were her child.

_He technically was._

Olaf bounded out the door and down the hallway, humming silently as he went.

The four people were silent for the moment, hearing Olaf's humming gradually fade.

Then Anna broke the silence.

"Shane you never told us why you are here in Arendelle."

Shane looked confused, "Er…what?"

Anna looked exasperated, "I-I mean, you seem to know a lot about that Vendetta group and their plane to overtake Arendelle. But you never actually told us what you're doing here and how you know these people."

"Oh…yeah…" Shane realized that everyone was staring at him. He knew that he was cornered.

"I-I…er… usually like to travel a lot. You know… family thing…" Shane tried his hardest.

_Damn, that was so lame_

Elsa raised an eyebrow, "Well, for a traveler, you do fight like a professional."

"Annnnd… you do seem to know about this 'group' of people and what they want with Arendelle." Anna chimed in.

_Great, now I really am stuffed_

"Oh… I used to live in Arendelle with my family before your parents…" Shane trailed off.

"Oh, it's ok, that was a long time ago," Elsa replied, " What happened to your parents Shane?"

He was silent for a moment; his eyes were distant as he remembered the memories.

_Fire_

_Heat_

_Smoke_

_Anger…_

"They were murdered; burned to death."

Elsa and Anna gasped in unison, Kristoff just looked down.

Elsa's mouth opened in shock, "Shane…I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to…"

"No…No it's ok. I'm over that now. It was a while back."

"Do you have a sibling around here?" Anna tried to brighten the mood up.

It didn't really work.

"Yeah, I used to. I had a sister named was Elise."

"What happened to her? Where is she now?"

"…Dead" Shane's voice was barely a whisper.

Anna started to tear up.

"Who killed your family Shane?"

"The same group of people who are trying to take over Arendelle."

Elsa seemed to share the sorrow with Shane. Her eyes were full of understanding for him. It was understandable. She did after all; lose her parents, and very nearly, her sister.

"Shane it's ok. You don't have to tell what happened if you don't want to. I understand that the memories are painful."

"Yeah, thank you Elsa. I think… I might have an early night sleep today. I have a long day tomorrow."

Shane left without another word. The room was suddenly sullen after he left. No one really wanted to talk about anything. Everyone was still shaken after the sudden change of mood.

Anna finally broke the silence, "I feel so sorry for Shane. It looked as if he had a really rough childhood. I mean, like all his family were killed. What type of sick person does that?"

"Maybe his family had some bad blood with them, or maybe had to repay a debt. We won't know until Shane tells us."

The sisters talked on for a while. There was nothing much they knew about Shane. He never opened or shared anything about his past. He was protective and kind, but he seemed to be distant from everyone. It was like he was holding some sort of secret. It was this secret that the sisters were now determined to find out about.

**_Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_**

Shane lay on his bed thinking about the conversation he just had. He felt angry inside. All those memories and flashbacks of his ruined past was something he could never forget.

His parents didn't do anything wrong-yet they were still murdered. His sister, Elise, did nothing wrong, yet she also paid with the same fate. It seemed that everything and everyone he loved and cared for were torn away from him, and destroyed.

There would be revenge. Yes, Shane would find whoever did this and kill them, even if it meant himself dying. There would be **Justice. **

But then, there was also the problem that the killers were now also on the loose, trying to kill the Queen and Princess. It was also Shane's job to protect them from any harm. It was the job that he had signed up for, in Arendelle, many years ago before the former king and queen's…_ accident. _And it was something Shane was willing to risk his life for. He could never live with himself, if anything bad happened to Elsa and Anna.

He had already failed to save the lives of his loved ones. He had failed to save the lives of many innocents. He had failed Arendelle. He was dishonoured.

Now, he wanted to find redemption and justice. He would protect Arendelle and the monarchs, even if it meant dying as a hero. He would hunt the killers that had ruined his childhood and find those who threaten to take over Arendelle.

Shane felt something spark inside of him. Amidst all of the despair and sorrow, he felt a growing confidence to do and accomplish his most important mission of all… to kill and protect.

It was the job he was trained to do.

_It was the job of an assassin…_

**_Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_**

_Somewhere in Arendelle…_

Skull Mask stood on the moonlit rooftop of his safe house overlooking the city.

As he set his eyes upon the castle, he felt his blood boil.

_They had survived…_

His men had failed to eliminate the monarchs once again. The ambush that had been so carefully planned out had once again proved futile against them.

_All because of Shane_

It was because of him that the monarchs survived. Because of him that his planned had failed so easily.

All this time he had thought that Shane was dead. Broken up and crushed aboard the ship on that fateful day.

It had felt like a crushing victory knowing that his biggest foe was dead.

Now, he was back alive, with hardly any physical scars on his body. It was like he had never suffered the carnage. One would only know from the mental scars that he bore.

Skull mask cringed as he felt his skin wrinkle and rot under his touch. All these years, he had suffered the pain and agony of feeling his flesh peel every morning he woke, of feeling his chest scream in agony as he struggled to take in precious air because of his stupid mask he had to wear. It felt life on earth the equivalent of burning in hell.

_It wasn't fair_

As long as that idiot, Shane, lived, he could never fulfill his plans. Shane would always stand in his way no matter what.

He had to be stopped.

Skull Mask would hunt him until he no longer breathed and walked on this earth. He would cause him more grief and pain than anyone could ever imagine. He would force Shane to see the rest of his world shatter and break, to see everything he loved burn, just like his parents, before his very eyes.

Queen Elsa and Princess Anna would be his scapegoats.

Arendelle would be finally his.

The people would cry and suffer under his reign.

Shane would die in the worst way possible.

_Only then would the world see his true power…_

**Okkkkkkk, that is the end of chapter 7. I am really sorry for the long update. Life has really been quite busy for me these last few weeks. School is now finally over, so I will try to post more chapters soon. **

**Pleas review my story. Tell me if you like it, or if you want me to improve or change anything. All your comments and reviews are always appreciated. See you all next time in chapter 8.**

**_OneZer0_**


	8. Ice Harvesting

Hey guys I'm back. I'm really sorry for the very long wait there was school and other stuff. So yeah… please don't hate me for that. Don't worry, the story will still continue- you are all in for a big surprise at the end of the story. But don't worry, that is still a long way to go. I really like the suggestion that someone gave me in my reviews, and I plan to do their idea in a later chapter. So if any of you have suggestions please message me, all ideas and comments are welcome. Anyway, enough talking, lets begin with chapter 8.

Ice Harvesting

_Ice_

_Cold_

_Tired_

_Angry_

These were the only things that could describe what Shane was feeling at the very moment.

He fumed as he picked up his what-felt-like-a-10 tonne pick axe and swung it down on the massive ice cube in front of him.

_Clang_

The sound was literally deafening to his ears. Shane gasped as he felt the air knocked from his lungs. He looked down to see his handiwork. He cursed out loud…_ He missed. _From a distance away, he could hear Kristoff's loud, booming laugh directed toward him. Shane scowled and bit his lip. He was going to do this. He was going to show Kristoff that he could cut ice.

Shane swung his axe down again.

_Clang_

The axe hit its mark and the ice started to split. Shane cheered internally and swung his axe down again.

_Clang_

The ice cube split and Shane yelled his victory. He dropped his axe and nearly fell. Both his arms and legs felt like strings and he felt as if his lungs were burning. But man, did Shane feel victorious.

He laughed shakily as the mountain man approached him. Kristoff laughed and clapped Shane on the back.

"You're already tired? We just started ice harvesting 30 minutes ago, and you're only on your third ice cube."

"At least- I- still managed to- cut the ice…" Shane puffed. Anymore of this, and Shane would probably pass out from exhaustion.

Kristoff laughed, " Ok, Ok I get it. C'mon we should be heading back to the castle now. It's getting late and you are dead tired."

"Says who?" Shane countered, "Just because I'm tired, it doesn't mean that I can't cut ice.

"Besides… how hard is cutting ice? Its just ice, right?"

Kristoff just snickered like an idiot and walked off to eat some carrots with Sven.

'It was so typical of him' Shane thought, 'just walking off to talk to his weird cow… wait… reindeer-cow, it doesn't really matter. What was even worst was that Kristoff actually shared carrots with his _pet_. Who does that?'

The more he thought about it, the more it confused him. For now he had more important things to do other than worry about some guy who talks and shares food with his reindeer or cow. Getting back on task, Shane picked up his pickaxe and took a deep breath.

This was it; time to show Kristoff that he wasn't completely useless at all.

With a new sense of pride, Shane closed his eyes and swung his pickaxe down hard on his small target.

CRACK

SMASH

Shane opened his mouth only to feel ice-cold water gush in. His body instantly tensed, and he felt as if thousands of daggers were all at once piercing it. His lungs burned and felt as if like they would explode. His whole body felt like an ice cube. What was worst, was that Shane couldn't breathe…

He couldn't do anything. He was helpless. Slowly drowning in ice-cold, freezing water, unable to see anything but knowing that he was seconds away from dark, painful death. A few seconds before, he was standing above the ground, about to crush that stupid ice cube-trying to prove to Kristoff that he could actually ice harvest. Now, he was practically freezing to death, meters beneath the surface, in below freezing ice water. He was practically already a dead corpse.

It was the reality that really terrified Shane. Down under a ton of ice, and practically being able to see nothing but darkness, it felt like being in a different world. It only seemed to replicate death even more! Yes, He'd been in some life risking situations before. But being so close to dying? It really scared him. This was one experience that Shane would never want to happen to him again, well… that is if he got out of this one alive of course. He didn't want to die like this. No! Shane would die either a hero's death or of old age. He had promised his father that. His father had died a hero, trying to save his family. Shane wouldn't die in just some dumb accident, freezing, practically blind, and unable to breathe. It would be failure.

He couldn't accept failure…

_**Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**_

_Back at the castle, a few minutes earlier_

"Damn it!"

Elsa yelled in frustration and slammed her fist down on her desk. Today was just not going the way she wanted it to go. There were many dignitaries requesting to see her about the preparations of the upcoming ball. The council was still pestering her about assigning more guards at the ball, which Elsa knew she really didn't need because she had Shane who had proved himself very useful in defending her and Anna. But what really bothered her was the number of suitors wanting to see her and try and win her hand in marriage.

Those damn guys act so desperately to find someone they can marry. Earlier in the day, she already had to meet a suitor by the name of Prince Richards, who apparently was the most arrogant person Elsa had ever met.

He had already requested a private meeting early in the morning, spent the whole hour describing his whole life story to her, ate everything on the table like a wild pig, then went and asked her if she wanted to go out with him to dinner. Well, of course, she had politely refused saying that she had a lot of things to do for the upcoming ball. But it wasn't over, Prince Richard had still persisted that she go out with him, and when she had refused a second time, he had called her an unsociable witch. That had really set Elsa on the edge. It had taken everything not to turn that arrogant prick into an ice cube.

Speaking of ice, Elsa wondered how Shane and Kristoff were doing. They had said to her the night before that they were going to go ice harvesting. Elsa, being very busy that morning, did not have time to personally greet Kristoff and Shane before they left. She would now have gladly taken any free offer to trade places with them. Anything other than staying in this stuffed office, seeing officials and playing 'polite Queen Elsa' to desperate suitors who wanted nothing more than the throne.

A loud knocking on her door suddenly shocked Elsa and interrupted her from her slumber state. Without even Elsa realizing, ice had started to spread all over her wooden table.

"Yes! Who is it?" Elsa half yelled, a bit to harshly. It was a second later that she realized her mistake. A worried looking Anna slowly opened the door and peered inside. Nothing but concern etched all over her face.

"Elsa? Are you ok? What's wrong?" She made her over to her older sibling and hugged her. "I heard you yell something out loud and went over to check on you."

"Thanks Anna, it's just been a… very tiring day, that's all. I mean there were a lot of foreign dignitaries and officials that needed attention. Not to mention the meeting with that sloppy prince." Elsa said the last words with distaste clearly in her mouth.

Anna couldn't help but giggle at her sister's bewildered expression, " I take it the breakfast with Prince Richard didn't go as expected."

"Don't ask," Elsa managed a small laugh, "that prince managed to eat all the food on the table and then asked me out on a date. Clearly I was going to say no."

Anna laughed, "Ok. Ok Elsa, I get it, you clearly had a really busy day. By the way, have you seen Shane and Kristoff. I haven't seen them at all today."

"They went out to go ice harvesting together. Kristoff said he wanted to Shane how to ice harvest."

"Awww that's sweet. Kristoff finally makes a new friend."

Elsa couldn't help but laugh. Anna could always lighten up the mood for her. She wondered how she managed to always be so positive. It could be so infuriating at times.

"You know, Elsa," Anna continued, "I really don't think Shane is that bad as a person. I mean sure he could be violent when he fights, but that's what an assassin does, right? And it also seems like he wants to redeem himself for something that he's done previously. And, Shane is kind of _hot_." Anna added the last part with a seductive tone

Elsa had to admit that Anna had a point. Shane clearly didn't have any bad intentions toward them, and he was actually a kind and nice person, except for those times when he had to fight the enemies. But for some reason, Elsa could never seem to get her eyes off him. His toned and muscular body seemed to always draw her attention. Whenever she was around with him, she seemed to always lose her air of dignity. She would start to stutter when she was around him, and she would blush when he looked and smiled at her.

She couldn't have possibly fallen for him… had she?

"Elsa" Anna's voice seemed to wake her up from her daydream. "You're blushing," she giggled, "Is it something I said about Shane?"

Elsa didn't know if her face could get any redder from both embarrassment and the actual truth. She just put her face in her hands and looked down, hoping to somehow disappear.

Anna took this in immediately, and a light bulb seemed to have appeared above her head. Her eyes went wide and her mouth formed a massive O. She just stood there on the spot for a full second without saying a thing.

"What?" Elsa was confused.

"Elsa! You like Shane, don't you?"

"Wh-what…I-I…" Elsa couldn't deny it. Now that truth had been exposed, she had to admit that she did like Shane. Why can't this all be a dream, and when she wakes up, it will be as if nothing had happened.

"Ohmygosh, you actually like him!" Anna had now gone into ecstatic mode. She was jumping all over the room with a massive half-moon smile plastered on her face. "Elsa! Why did you never tell me this? I could've you know, given you some girl advice."

Elsa face was now redder than a tomato from some serious furious blushing. "Anna," she hissed, "ssshhh, people will hear us talking."

"I don't care! Ohmygosh Elsa! You like Shane. I knew you had it somewhere inside you."

Before anyone outside heard their sisterly talk, Elsa quickly clamped Anna's mouth shut with her hand, trying to muffle the sounds coming out of her mouth.

"Mmmf- Els-mmmf? Wha-mmmf are mmmf doin-mmmf?" Anna looked upset that she could now no longer tease her elder.

"Anna," Elsa said slowly, "I'll take my hand off your mouth if you promise not to talk loudly."

Anna nodded and mumbled something that sounded a bit like an 'ok, I promise' type of phrase.

Elsa took her hand off Anna's mouth and raised an eyebrow at her.

"Ok, you were saying…"

"Elsa I never knew you liked him. Why didn't you tell me?"

Elsa sighed, "It's just because I was embarrassed about it. I didn't want Shane thinking I was awkward or anything like that."

"Elsa! For all I know, Shane might just as well like you. You're a gorgeous person, and many people have already fallen for you. It's just that you turn them down because you want to get the perfect man in your life. I totally understand that. At least you didn't rush and instead found a jerk like Han's. I really think that Shane is a good guy."

Elsa looked down to hide her embarrassment. Anna really could tease her well. "Thanks Anna, I was actually planning to assign him as my personal body guard. I don't think that Captain Elias is as good as he is in defending me."

Anna snorted in a very unladylike manner.

"Yeah, you can replace that arrogant pig with Shane. What does he do other than sit around and boss the soldiers around? Nothing!"

What Anna said was mostly true. Captain Elias of the Arendelle guard and Queen's personal guard was hired when the former monarchs were still alive. His arrogant and proud attitude made him an unpopular figure among the guards. But his knowledge in both politics and warfare, as well as his skill in fighting made him a superior person in the kingdom. Elias was immediately promoted to become the Queen's personal guard after the formers passed away. But over the years, Elias had proved himself useless in actually defending the Queen. He was too much in to politics and his social rank to care about his actual duty-protecting the Queen and all of Arendelle.

Elsa sighed as she thought of how hard it would be to relieve Elias from his position. He would probably go on about boasting about his skill and rank.

"Anna, you know that he would probably just go on and on about why he should stay as my personal guard. It would be nearly impossible to try and talk him out if it."

"Elsa!" Anna said exasperated, "You are the Queen of Arendelle. You can do anything you want. So if you want to make Shane your personal bodyguard and get rid of that Elias guy once and for all, then do it."

Elsa had to admit, Anna had a point. She was indeed the Queen of Arendelle. She had the full authority over everything. She could very well relieve Ronald of his position if she very well pleased.

As the two sisters continued to talk about their current situation, little did they know, that the man they were planning to assign as a personal guard was drowning in a lake of ice.

**Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Panic had now entered Shane's world of fiasco. He was now moving furiously with the last ounce of whatever energy he had left to reach the surface. It was useless. Shane's heavy clothes and weapons only proved to be dead weight in his vigorous struggle against the icy water. Time was running out, fast. Shane could feel his body quickly shutting down. There wasn't long left. This was it. This was where he was going to die. In an icy lake, alone, with no one going to rescue him. Shane didn't even get to even see Elsa one last time. He was supposed to be protecting her, defending her and her sister from any harm that could come her way. Yet here he was dying, without even achieving one of his goals. It was a failure.

Just as Shane gave up his struggle for survival and waited for the eternal darkness to envelop him, he felt a strong pair of arms pulling him up to the surface and out of the water. Many things happened all at once. Shane coughed violently and spat out water as cold air surged into his lungs. He felt a strong pair of hands compress his chest and what felt like a distant voice call out his name, telling him to wake up. And he felt a strange slimy object that felt like a tongue licking his face, with reindeer stench all over it. That seemed to wake Shane up.

Horrified that his predicament of a reindeer licking his face may be true, Shane's eyes shot straight open and was instantly met with a slimy red tongue running all over his face a second time. It seemed that his hypothesis had been correct.

"Ahh- what the-" Shane words were muffled by Sven's tongue as he went for another round of vigorous licking. "Get this- th- off me…"

"Sven, that's enough, let the poor guy breathe." Shane wasn't even aware that Kristoff was watching silently as his pet slowly tortured him with his drool. And he didn't even bother to say anything! Shane didn't know what to do. He felt like hugging Kristoff for saving him from drowning and strangling him at the same time for letting the reindeer lick his face. Thankfully he didn't have to do either because Kristoff had already started to ask questions.

"Shane. Are you alright?" His voice was laced with concern. "You had quite a rough fall."

"What happened? How did I fall in?"

Kristoff looked confused, "You were about to cut the ice cube like you wanted to prove. But you missed and instead hit the frozen lake. You went down so fast that I didn't even realise until Sven alerted me."

Shane was shocked. How close had he been to death? If it hadn't been for his friends, he would already be frozen, sinking to the bottom of an endless abyss.

He realised that he actually owed Kristoff and Sven for saving his life. He made a mental note to get them something nice for helping him.

"Kristoff. Thanks for saving my life, man. I wouldn't be standing here if you weren't there." Shane pat the big mountain man on the back.

"Na, it's ok. You're a friend. Of course I'd help you."

Shane didn't know what to say so he just stayed silent.

"C'mon, we should start heading back to the castle. It's getting late. It's a shame we didn't get to visit my family- the troll rocks. I guess we'll go next time" Kristoff sighed, "Bulda and Grand Pabbie must be dying to see me."

And so…off the trio went on their long journey back to castle Arendelle, silently praying that the Queen and princess wouldn't physically kill them for being so reckless.

_**Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**_

It was late when a grumpy mountain man, a tired reindeer, and a shivering assassin finally entered the gates of castle Arendelle.

The group knew what they were in for when they saw Elsa and Anna waiting at the entrance, hands folded, scowls plastered onto their faces. Kristoff was the first to reach the group, which was a bad thing because he got a resounding slap on the face from his angry, fiery girlfriend.

"Where were you guys? You said that you'd be back before dark!"

"Um… oh well, hehe, you know, we were tired so we took it slow and easy…"

Anna didn't look impressed, "You are going to have to give me a much better explanation, Bjorgman!"

Kristoff shrunk back and gulped.

"Well we had an incident earlier, Shane apparently fell in…" Kristoff instantly clamped his mouth shut, realising what he was just about to say.

But the damage had already been done.

Elsa, who was quiet during the whole encounter, instantly perked her head up as soon as Kristoff stopped short.

"What? He fell in what?"

"Well… um… it's really nothing to worry about"

"Kristoff tell me!" Elsa's blue eyes seemed to pierce like sharp icicles straight through him.

"He fell in a frozen lake…"

"He what?!"

"He fell in a frozen lake and nearly died if we weren't there to pull him out in time."

Elsa was silent for a moment, as if trying to process what she had just heard.

"How?" She finally turned to look at Shane, "How did you fall in?"

"I… wanted to prove to Kristoff that I could harvest ice… and I kinda missed the ice cube and hit the frozen lake instead."

Elsa felt like pulling her hair out. Why does a guy, who is a professional at fighting, an expert in weapons, and a silent killer have to be so childish? It seemed such a small thing to fuss over. Really? _I wanted to prove to Kristoff that I could harvest ice… _Sometimes, Elsa never really understood men.

"Ok, Ok," she shook her head, "You two better get some rest. You had a long day. Shane, tomorrow come and meet me at the barracks early in the morning after breakfast. I have to… discuss some important business with you."

Shane looked puzzled but decided not to comment or question any further. He had already pissed off an ice-wielding Queen. To annoy her even more would surely be suicide.

As he, Kristoff and Sven started toward the castle doors, Elsa turned to look at them one more time, "And please, try not to kill yourselves next time," she said in a more sarcastic tone.

Shane and Kristoff did their best to hide their smirks as they hurried inside. When they were gone Anna turned to face her elder sibling.

"So… important business, eh. Why didn't you just tell him about the whole bodyguard thing?"

Elsa sighed, "I just don't want to pressure him at the moment. He already had a near death experience today."

Anna nodded, "I understand, but we've got to brief him about his new position you're offering and replacing Captain Elias."

"Yeah, I'll tell him tomorrow when I see him."

Anna then announced that she was going to bed early and hugged her elder sibling. As her footsteps finally faded into the quiet darkness, Elsa looked up toward the stars. She began to replay the events of her day. The meeting with Prince Richard, her decision on replacing the captain of the guard and finally her shock of finding out that Shane had nearly drowned because of stupid challenge he took. She sometimes wondered why on earth she was destined to be a queen and not some ordinary person living a normal life. Sometimes she really did feel like banging her head against a wall. Dealing with the problems of this life can really be a hassle.

**Guys, once again I'm sorry for the really long wait. I've been really busy. Also I know the ending Is pretty brief but I will improve it a bit later on. Anyways thanks all for reading, please review this chapter. See you guys at the next chapter.**

**RT_OneZer0**


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